... oh and the EF-111 went into retirement before the EA-6 Prowler, so they’re probably not even a possibility. I recall that toward the end Navy Prowlers were considered a “strategic asset” and they were flying jamming missions for the USAF in the Balkans.
I feel obliged to point out, however, that the EF-111 carried far more fuel, could go supersonic, and carried 10 transmitters internally with an internal electrical power supply. Anyone who has flown in a Prowler and struggled to get more than one pod out of three up and running can appreciate the importance of not using a RAT.
DOT&E says it is a problem for the “Growler” too: “The EA-18G also exhibited low reliability, due primarily to the frequent failure of the legacy ALQ-99 jamming pods and their newly designed pod interface units.”
Oh well. The USAF gave up on EW a long time ago...